


When do you say...

by Kaiyou



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Confessions, M/M, Pining, akaten established relationship, oiken established relationship, possibly onesided bokuro
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-03
Updated: 2016-08-12
Packaged: 2018-07-29 00:43:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7663615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaiyou/pseuds/Kaiyou
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bokuto is in love with Kuroo, and has been for ages without saying anything. Finally deciding to bite the bullet, he turns to Akaashi for advice.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. What Best Friends Are For

“When do you say I love you?”

Akaashi pondered the question. He was not unused to random queries from Bokuto. Most of the time they had to do with wildlife or volleyball teams. He rather enjoyed pausing after each question when they had time, examining and discarding the answers as needed before waiting to see if Bokuto came up with an answer himself.

Often he did.

Often it was not one of the ones that Akaashi had considered.

They were hanging out in the kitchen of Akaashi’s bakery. All of the workers had gone home after the rush for Sunday brunch. Bokuto was not normally allowed back here, his creativity with baked goods tended to leave something to be desired. But Akaashi had relented a bit since Bokuto had moved back to Tokyo. He might, he supposed, have even been a bit lonely since his boyfriend was out of town this week on a fishing trip. Either way, Bokuto was behaving himself while Akaashi checked over the books, so he was happy to have him there.

Even with an unusual question.

“After dinner, I suppose,” Akaashi finally said. “Or when he’s engrossed in reading for his job and I look over and it just hits me that he’s there. I’m not sure, why?”

The way Bokuto stared at him a bit slackjawed made Akaashi realize that perhaps he wasn’t approaching the question correctly. 

Bokuto fidgeted, staring down at his hands. “I didn’t mean when you tell Tendou you love him,” he finally said, making a face. 

“Well, you did ask,” Akaashi replied, taking a sip of tea.

“I know.”

The mop of grey-black hair seemed almost as dejected as Bokuto himself. It was a new form of Bokuto in dejected mode. A more mature form, far too quiet for Akaashi to like it. Bokuto shouldn’t be this still. His moods should be like a cork in water, sometimes momentarily sad but always shooting back up to happy. 

“Are you dating someone?” Akaashi finally ventured, frowning at the slight shake of Bokuto’s head. “Ok then, you like someone?”

Bokuto shrugged, fingers fidgeting in a way that reminded Akaashi of himself.

He sighed. “Is it a girl?” he asked, holding back a chuckle at the dirty look Bokuto shot him. “Ok, fine then. Someone on your team? No? Someone in management? Help me out, this feels like twenty questions. Is it -”

“It’s Tetsurou,” Bokuto mumbled.

“Kuroo-san?” Akaashi asked, momentarily stunned. They’d all been friends for years, ever since playing against each other in high school. Still, Bokuto had never given any sign to being in love with anyone over the past few years. He was too devoted to volleyball. “How long?”

“Since second year,” Bokuto admitted, shrugging again.

That admission left Akaashi quite perturbed. He stirred the honey that had settled at the bottom of his tea, trying to reconcile this with what he knew about Bokuto. “You never told him?”

Bokuto huffed. “He was my best friend,” he said. “Well, besides you of course, Akaashi. And I thought he was in love with Kenma.”

Akaashi nodded. They’d all thought that Kuroo was in love with Kozume. They’d thought that Kozume was in love with Kuroo as well, of course, even if neither of them was willing to admit it publically. The news that Kozume had started dating Oikawa-san had shocked them all, especially when Kuroo seemed almost proud of the two of them. He was in Los Angeles this month hanging out with Kozume while Oikawa was on a whirlwind tour of interviews waiting for his new film to open. 

He’d be back soon, though.

“You want to tell Kuroo-san that you love him?” Akaashi finally said, voice gentle.

Bokuto nodded slowly. “I tried making it go away,” he murmured. “It almost did, especially when I was playing for the team in Brazil. Things were just awesome down there, you know? The people were so friendly even if the food was weird. I could talk to him over Skype, but it was just like friends, you know?”

Akaashi made a small noncommittal noise of that Bokuto would hopefully interpret as encouragement to continue. He was still having trouble dealing with the whole idea that Bokuto had hidden his crush for years.

“But then,” Bokuto said, shoulders slumping, “I moved back here to Tokyo. And it only made sense to move in with Kuroo, right? Because we’re friends, and even though he makes good money freelancing for pharmaceutical companies the income isn’t all that steady. Plus living alone sucks, and who else would I want to room with? Besides you I mean. But I don’t really want to walk in on you and Tendou going at it in the living room.”

Or the kitchen, or the bathroom, or the entryway, Akaashi thought, momentarily distracted. Tendou was rather creative.

“So we got this new place together, a nice 2LDK in the city with a decent view. Great, right?”

Pursing his lips, Akaashi took a drink. “Not great?” he said.

“No!” Bokuto said. “I poop all the time!”

Akaashi blinked. “I have bran muffins.”

Bokuto made a face. “Well, not all the time. But it doesn’t seem like Kuroo ever does, you know? It seems like the only time he uses the bathroom is to take a shower - and thinking of him in there naked is so hard! It just feels wrong, having these kind of thoughts about him. I mean, he’s so close, all I want to do is hold him and kiss him and it just feels wrong. Because we’re friends.”

“But you guys are pretty close,” Akaashi said, thinking it over. “And don’t you think you might be idealizing him a bit? I mean, I’m sure that Kuroo does have to take a shit occasionally.”

“Akaashi!” Bokuto said, looking scandalized.

“I remember quite distinctly that night in college where the two of you drank so much you had a contest to see who could write the most letters of the alphabet on the wall in your piss,” Akaashi countered, noticing Bokuto’s embarrassed flush. “Wait - were you looking at his dick that whole time?”

“Not while he was peeing!” Bokuto said. “Though other times - well, maybe.”

Suddenly remembering Kuroo’s penchant for walking around half-naked, Akaashi wondered if that translated into completely naked in his own home. Well, he had been living alone for a while before moving in with Bokuto. Akaashi thought for a moment. “Have you seen him hard?”

“Akaaaaaashi!” replied Bokuto, the pink on his cheeks deepening. “You shouldn’t be thinking about Kuroo’s hard cock! You have Tendou!”

“It was just a question, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi replied.

“Maybe,” Bokuto finally admitted, chewing his bottom lip. “Just morning wood though. You know, when I’m in the living room and awake before he is because I’m still getting used to the time change, and he walks out on his way to the restroom..”

“So he does pee then.”

“To shower! He showers in the morning, Akaashi,” Bokuto said, still looking like a child caught doing something naughty.

Akaashi just nodded, wondering if Kuroo was as oblivious to Bokuto’s feelings as Bokuto thought he was. With Kuroo, one never knew. Granted, the man was brilliant, but he could also be appallingly dense at times.

Come to think of it, Akaashi didn’t remember Kuroo ever actually dating anyone either. Akaashi remembered some minor speculation after the news about Kenma and Oikawa made its way through their shared social circles, but nothing really came of anything. Akaashi just remembered wondering if they’d been wrong about Kuroo’s sexuality for years and that he really did like girls. He had had that one girlfriend in high school after all, even if it was a short-lived affair.

“It’s not all about sex though,” Bokuto continued glumly. “It’s his laugh, and the way he looks sometimes, like he can see everything about me. He’s gentle, and loving, and he makes me laugh. And when we snuggle together, it just feels so peaceful. Well, other than the fact that I don’t want to touch him too much, and sometimes I’m just wondering if I can touch him more or if it’ll make him uncomfortable and I don’t want to ruin things by making it awkward and I’m just a bit of a bumbling loser here.”

Akaashi frowned. He was used to Bokuto’s self-deprecating remarks, but he didn’t like seeing him in pain.

“What if I’m the only one in love?”

The look on Bokuto’s face as he said those words, golden eyes looking down at clinched fingers, was enough to make Akaashi wrap him up and protect him forever. Unfortunately, they were adults now, and things weren’t that easy.

“Are you in love?” Akaashi asked.

Bokuto shrugged. “I think so,” he said. “Well, maybe it’s just a crush. Maybe you’re right, and I am idealizing things. I mean, I’m happy now, just living with him. Getting to actually see him. I don’t want that to change.”

Reaching out, Akaashi slid a hand over Bokuto’s own, tugging fingers gently apart from one another and squeezing them. “He’ll still be Kuroo no matter what, right? So don’t worry. And don’t feel like you have to rush into things. You have time.”

“I guess,” Bokuto said, sighing mournfully. “It’s just - I don’t want to miss anything, you know? There really isn’t enough time. I already feel like I’ve waited forever. We spent so much time far apart, and now that we’re close together, it’s like this distance between us and I don’t know how to cross it.”

Akaashi nodded. He only had some inkling of what that was like. Then again, he’d been lucky.

Tendou and he had never really been friends, at least not in the way that Bokuto and Kuroo were. The redhead’s attraction for him had always seemed obvious to Akaashi. Not that Tendou had ever bluntly come out and said anything, at least not in the beginning. 

But Akaashi remembered the way Tendou’s eyes had tracked him in the commons at their university. He remembered the flourishes as Tendou spoke when they hung out together with other friends, way Akaashi always felt like he was the center of attention. It was quieter than being at the center of Bokuto’s attention. Less focused on what the other person did, more focused on what would make Akaashi happy. In a way, he was probably spoiled.

He had to admit it was a good feeling, though. 

Akaashi had been the first to say “I love you.” They’d hung out a few times, finding excuses to study together even though they weren’t actually taking the same classes. Akaashi was good at math and Tendou was good at writing, and it was fun. Akaashi had laughed, often, and enjoyed the little hesitant touches of Tendou’s hand against his. The fact that Tendou was incredibly attractive to him hadn’t hurt one bit. That first “I love you” had earned him a looked of surprised adoration, and given him a glimpse of Tendou’s shy side that he hadn’t even known existed. 

He loved him for it.

Loved him for all the things, really.

It wasn’t really similar to what Bokuto faced with Kuroo, though, and that was the issue at hand.

“Ask Kenma,” Akaashi finally said. “He knows Kuroo better than I do, and he won’t sugarcoat things for you.”

Bokuto pouted. “He’s all the way over in America.”

“Well,” Akaashi countered, “You could just rip the bandaid off and tell Kuroo you’re in love with him. Worst comes to worst one of you will has to move out.”

“And our friendship could be over forever!”

“Nonsense,” Akaashi said, squeezing Bokuto’s hand to mitigate any harshness in his words. “You two are best friends. I’m sure you’d work through any awkwardness eventually.”

Bokuto puffed air into his cheeks and sighed. “Fine,” he finally said, squeezing Akaashi’s hand back. “I guess.... I guess I’ll ask Kenma. Later.”

Akaashi nodded and pulled his hand back, sipping his tea. “Now, tell me about the new team,” he said.

Visibly brightening Bokuto said, “They’re awesome! Well, I mean the setter isn’t as good as you of course Akaashi, but it’s so much fun! There’s a guy on there that reminds me of the shortie, and...”

The words washed over him in a wave, individual meaning not really important. What mattered was that Bokuto was happy, after all. Bokuto should always be happy.

Happy and floating, like a cork bobbing along in water. That way, the world was still working as it should.

. . .

The first thing Akaashi noticed when he walked in the door were the boots in the entryway. Boots that still had mud and grime around the edges. Some had fallen off onto the floor.

He frowned. 

Well, at least it wasn’t tracked into the hallway.

“I’m home!” he called out, waiting for but getting no response. Shaking his head he took his own shoes off and walked into the kitchen. There were dirty pans in the sink. A plate with scraps of fried fish and potatoes was still on the table, and a tupperware container was sitting out on the counter still smelling like fish. Smelling strongly of fish. 

His lips twitched in annoyance. 

He walked into the living room and saw Tendou with his headphones on playing some videogame. A first-person shooter, the type he’d sometimes play for hours, talking and laughing with strangers online. Talking loudly.

It was at that moment that Akaashi knew he had a choice. He could give into frustration, or let it go.

In reality, the choice was easy.

Akaashi stood for a moment in the doorway of the living room, watching the redhead joke and trashtalk as he shot his way through his opponents. Tendou was beautiful when he laughed, head thrown back, completely uninhibited like he did most things in life. Once again for the millionth time, Akaashi was struck by how much he loved the other man. His lover. His boyfriend. Someday soon, perhaps even his husband.

It still amazed him that this man had been worried about confessing. Tendou was just so bright and shining. It angered Akaashi that anyone had ever told him he was ugly, had inserted even a sliver of doubt into his natural confidence. Tendou always said that Akaashi was beautiful, but Akaashi knew Tendou was amazing. 

Even if he did sometimes leave a dirty dishes on the table.

Tendou glanced over, eyes widening, grin splitting his face. He made quick apologies to his teammates and signed out of the game, tossing his headset aside. “Ah! Welcome home!” he said, bounding to his feet and coming over to hug Akaashi. 

Akaashi laughed, tucking his head into Tendou’s shoulder as the other man nuzzled his neck.

“That’s the smell I missed,” Tendou said, nipping gently. “If I’d known you were coming home this early I would’ve waited to eat. Have you had dinner yet? Can I fix you something? I still have leftover fish, I put them in the freezer.”

Smiling into Tendou’s shirt Akaashi shook his head. “I ate. I thought you were going to be home later,” he said, pulling back so he could look at his lover.

“Nah, I wanted to come home early and surprise you,” Tendou said, glancing sheepishly over at the television. “I guess it wasn’t much of a surprise, eh?”

“No,” Akaashi said. “It’s fine. I’m happy you’re home.”

“Aww,” Tendou said, grinning. “Miss me?”

“Yes.”

Akaashi loved how Tendou’s smile gentled at that admission. He loved the way Tendou really looked at him in these moments, loved how he still seemed so full of wonder at the fact that they were actually together. The moments had faded a bit since the beginning, as they’d gotten more and more used to each other. In the beginning, Tendou probably would’ve been careful to clean his shoes off before even coming in the door. Now, sometimes he took things for granted.

But that was alright. He was still incredibly thoughtful, more often than not.

“Did you have fun with Ushijima and your other friends?” Akaashi asked.

“Yeah! He caught the best fish, of course, and I know that Shibaru and him were sneaking off some nights so I wouldn’t hear them - but it was loads of fun. Nothing like the lake right before sunrise. You should come with us sometime.”

Akaashi shrugged. “I may,” he said. He really wasn’t much into fishing, but if it made Tendou happy, he’d do it occasionally.

“Good,” Tendou said, gaze lingering on Akaashi’s lips. “I missed you too.”

There was something so truthful, so honest about the man in his arms that Akaashi sometimes wanted to cry. He was just so full with emotions, it was overwhelming.

But he didn’t cry.

Instead, he just said, “I love you.”

Tendou’s eyes widened again, and then he smiled, soft and gentle, hands holding Akaashi like he was so delicate he might break. Then he dropped his forehead down against Akaashi’s and whispered, “I love you too.”


	2. In the Middle of the Night

Kenma was almost asleep when the light on his phone flashed. Frowning he picked it up, wondering if Oikawa had gotten into trouble or needed him to come pick him up. Not that he ever had - Oikawa was actually extremely reliable most of the time, even when Iwaizumi wasn’t around to keep him in line - but the threat was there. Kenma had heard all the stories about Hollywood actors and their after-parties, and he always worried.

Not enough to go with him - at least, not often - but he still worried.

Instead, it was a message from Bokuto.

**MoistOwlet1: HEY ARE YOU AWAKE**

Kenma’s lips twitched, and he rolled over onto his back, careful not to jostle the man next to him.

**PH-chan: its almost 2 in the morning here bo**

He watched the screen, pondering for a moment if he should recend Oikawa’s right to change his name. He already had to deal with horribly tacky selfies for his lock and home screens. 

Bokuto didn’t respond for a few minutes. Kenma frowned. It was possible that there was a problem back home. There was also a chance that Bokuto had just wanted to ask him a random question. Maybe he’d wanted to ask Kuroo something.

Though if that was the case, he could’ve called Kuroo directly. Not that he would’ve answered, but that was another story.

The man in question huffed and turned over in his sleep, grabbing at Kenma’s pillow. So annoying.

Ah well. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep in here anyhow. It’d just felt so much like old times, sitting together without doing much of anything but enjoying each other’s company. Although he didn’t regret the move to the States he missed his best friend. Kuroo had played around with the idea of moving over as well at one point. There were plenty of jobs here, after all, and Oikawa’s people had good connections.

But for some reason, the idea had faded out. Kenma thought it might have had something to do with Bokuto moving back to Tokyo.

Kenma made a face at the phone when Bokuto continued his silence. He should just let it go. It probably wasn’t important, and he’d been so close to sinking into lazy sleep. Unfortunately, worry now had him fully awake, so he decided to bite the bullet and just call him back.

After a few rings, Bokuto picked up.

“Hello?”

“What did you want, Bokuto-san,” Kenma murmured.

“Kenma! Hey hey hey! How are you!”

“Fine.”

“Is Kuroo there?”

Kenma made a face. “He’s asleep. Did you try to call him?” He hadn’t heard the buzz of Kuroo’s phone.

“No! No, it’s ok....” Bokuto said, trailing off in a way that left Kenma a bit confused. If Bokuto didn’t want to talk to Kuroo, then why?”

“Are you alright?” Kenma asked, suddenly concerned.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Bokuto said. “Ah, can you, maybe, ah, move away from Kuroo?”

That had Kenma raising an eyebrow. “Why?”

“Ah! Well, I want to ask you something, and I don’t want...”

Kenma frowned, waiting for Bokuto to finish. It wasn’t like him to be nervous like this. He even had a hard time keeping birthday presents a secret - not to mention all the times when he’d completely messed up surprise parties. Granted, Kenma was thankful for the time he’d accidentally let slip that Kuroo was planning a party for Kenma’s birthday. Kenma really didn’t like the idea of entering a dark room only to have a ton of people yell at him, even if their intentions were positive.

Sighing, Kenma got up from the bed and walked out onto the long balcony that ran along the side of Oikawa’s apartment. The wind was chilly. Thankfully, someone had left a blanket along the back of Kenma’s favorite chair. It was teal, so he was pretty sure who.

It made him smile.

Snuggling up in the blanket and looking out over the lights of the city, he said, “Ok. I’m away from Kuroo now.”

“He can’t hear you?”

“No, Bo. He can’t hear me,” Kenma said patiently.

Bokuto sighed. “Oh. Ok then. Good,” he said, waiting another minute. Kenma was about to ask him to get to the point when he continued, “When do you say I love you?”

Kenma made a face. “To Kuroo?” he asked.

“No! Well yes, but No. Ah. Like, or I guess, when did you first say I love you? To Oikawa, I mean, since that’s who you’re in love with, right? Aha, I mean, you moved across the ocean for him, and you’re living with him, and you’ve been dating for what, three years now, and -”

“Stop!” Kenma said, cheeks flaming. “I don’t - I haven’t - I don’t say that sort of thing.”

“Eh?” 

Kenma fidgeted in the chair. He shouldn’t have to explain this to Bokuto. “I - we don’t - ugh.”

“Then how does he know you love him?” Bokuto asked. “Wait, do you love him?”

“Well -” Kenma started, trying to get his heart under control. This whole thing was far too embarrassing. “Ah, probably. Maybe. Ah -”

“Well you let him fuck you, right? I can’t see you doing that for someone you didn’t love.”

Kenma hung up.

Bokuto could be such an ass sometimes. Kenma caught his breath, curling into the blankets. He’d almost sounded like Kuroo there for a second, except Kuroo would have done it on purpose. Though never to Kenma. Bokuto probably didn’t mean for it to come off like it had, he was just, well, Bokuto. 

The phone rang, and Kenma let it go to voicemail. 

Soon enough though, guilt started eating away at his pique, and so when the phone rang again he answered it wordlessly.

“Kenma, Kenma are you there? Did we get disconnected?”

“No.”

“Oh,” Bokuto said, “What, then - wait - did you hang up on me?”

Kenma glanced to the side, cheeks burning, this time at his own childish actions. “Maybe,” he mumbled.

“You - because I -” Bokuto started, pausing. It surprised most people, but Bokuto could be thoughtful at times. It just took him a second. “Oh, because I was pushing, huh. I’m sorry, Kenma.”

“Hmm.” Kenma said, picking at a loose thread on the side of the blanket.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to push, it’s just - you know more about this than I do.”

Kenma made a face.”Know more about what?”

“Relationships, love. That sort of thing.”

“Do not,” he said, reacting on instinct. The expected reply didn’t come, however; Bokuto wasn’t Kuroo. Bokuto could be patient. Bokuto wanted his advice. Bokuto liked somebody.

Kenma glanced towards the bedroom, suddenly glad that they were outside of Kuroo’s earshot. He felt very protective suddenly. Swallowing, he asked, “Do you have someone you like, Bokuto?”

“Ah, haha. Um, yeah,” Bokuto admitted. 

That was not good news. Kenma felt torn. On the one hand, he wanted to support Bokuto. On the other hand, well. He knew Kuroo had been low-key in love with Bokuto for years. He’d never said anything because Bokuto was so focused on volleyball. But Kenma was pretty sure that Kuroo was using the fact that they were now living together as a way to work up the nerve to confess at some point. 

If he went back and Bokuto was dating someone else, it would crush him. 

But Kenma cared about Bokuto as well, and there was no way he would pick sides. He sighed. “Well. So. You want to know, huh.”

“Yeah, well like. You and Oikawa were friends for a while before you got into a relationship, right?”

“Yes,” Kenma said. Oikawa had lived across the hall from him in the dorm at university. His roommate had been a loud blond with a tongue ring that drove Kenma crazy on a regular basis. One day, when Kenma was sitting outside the door waiting for Terushima’s guest to leave, Oikawa had come home and taken pity on him.

He’d found out that Oikawa’s roommate was always gone, staying with his girlfriend. He’d also learned that Oikawa, far from being the loud and overbearing person he sometimes acted like in public, was actually fairly low-key in private. Iwaizumi, Oikawa’s best friend, was also good company when he came to visit. 

“So?” Bokuto said. “How did things change?”

“Ah,” Kenma said, “Badly.”

He remembered the night they’d come back from a party - one of the rare events that Oikawa had convinced him would be fun and wasn’t. Oikawa had had too much to drink, of course - without Iwaizumi there to keep an eye on him he’d been bad about things like that. He’d blown off the people who tried to pick him up, though, insisting that he couldn’t leave his ‘Pudding-chan’ alone. When Kenma decided to leave and go home, Oikawa followed. Of course, that was one of the nights when Terushima was using the room for sex. Of course, Oikawa’s roommate had chosen that as the one night in a milion he decided to stay home. Of course, that had meant that Kenma and Oikawa had to share Oikawa’s bed.

And of course, Kenma had realized far too late how much he cared about the moppy-haired setter.

Things had gotten physical that night. Not to far, but faster than Kenma was comfortable with, given what he’d discovered about his feelings. The way Oikawa had looked at him had been too much, too much. The gentleness of his touch -

Kenma’d spent a lot of nights in the 24-hour library in the days after that, until Iwaizumi had finally tracked him down, angry and protective.

Oikawa had looked like hell when Iwaizumi dragged Kenma back to the dorm. Kenma had never seen that side of Oikawa before - depressed and full of self-loathing. Like it was his fault. 

It had never been his fault.

“Ah,” Kenma continued, realizing he was taking too much time thinking about the past, “Yeah, badly at first, but Iwaizumi helped us. And once I knew Oikawa actually liked me and wasn’t just, well, playing around, then things got better.”

“Playing around?” Bokuto asked.

“Ah, well. We started out kinda physical. Before we talked about, you know, Being more than friends.” Kenma hated this. It was like pulling teeth.

“Kenma!” Bokuto exclaimed. “Huh. So I guess jumping his bones would probably be a bad way to start things out, then.”

His? Huh. Well, that answered at least part of the question about the identity of Bokuto’s love interest. 

“Yeah, well,” Kenma replied, “maybe? It depends on the person. But just, ah, whatever you do, make sure to let Kuroo know about it if you do anything at the house, ok? Walking in on things like that is kinda, well.” Bad. Kenma suspected that it would be a thousand times worse if one of the people involved was someone you were in love with.

“Walking in on things?” Bokuto asked. “Like, you think it would be bad if he walked in and I was jacking off? Or would that be a good thing? I should tell him beforehand?”

Suddenly flooded with images that were not what Kenma wanted to think about, he said, “Ah. Well. I didn’t mean that - though - eh, I’m not sure Kuroo would actually care to be honest.” He’d actually probably stick around to watch, as surreptitiously as possible. “But I meant, sex. With this person you like. If things turn out well, of course.”

There was silence on Bokuto’s end for a moment. “Why would I need to tell him if we were having sex?”

Kenma frowned. “Well it’s really disconcerting to walk in on, like I said.”

“But why would he be walking in on me having sex with him?”

“Like if he came home suddenly? Or you didn’t know he was coming?” 

“Kenma! I’d hope I’d know when he was coming, ah. Er. Wait. Um....”

It was clear they were miscommunicating in some way. This wasn’t uncommon, but normally Bokuto was fairly straightforward, even when he was trying to be subtle. Frowning, Kenma reassessed their conversation from the beginning. Something he’d said earlier - “Bokuto, do you like Kuroo?”

“Shh! Not so loud!” Bokuto gasped. “He could hear you!”

Kenma glanced back at the sliding glass doors between him and the man in question. Considering Kuroo had pillows bunched up around his ears and was quietly snoring, Kenma was fairly certain that they were safe. 

Well.

That changed everything.

Except, of course, that he couldn’t actually tell Bokuto how Kuroo felt, or vice versa. 

“I talked to Akaashi and he said that I should talk to you about it,” Bokuto said.

“Oh?” Kenma replied, thinking he’d want to talk to Akaashi about that. This was definitely something that he could’ve used a heads up on.

“Yeah he said you wouldn’t sugarcoat things. So, uh. What’s the best way for me to confess?”

Kenma made a face, This was annoying. Still, he did want the two of them to get together, if only so that Kuroo would stop pining about Bokuto over the phone to him. Of course, if they got together, there was no way Kuroo would be moving over to America anytime soon, but still.

Sometimes you had to sacrifice for the greater good.

And he did care about both of these idiots, after all.

“Well,” Kenma finally said, “I’m not guaranteeing it will work or anything, but here are some things you might try.”

.......

A hand running through his hair woke Kenma up, and he rolled over, opening his eyes.

“Hey,” he said, blinking.

Oikawa smiled down at him. “Hey.”

Kenma raised his hand, letting his boyfriend tug him up and out of bed. He followed Oikawa out of the room, glancing back once at a sleeping Kuroo. It made him smile.

“Did you have a good night?” Kenma asked, turning back to Oikawa after closing the door.

“Yeah,” Oikawa said, walking into the kitchen and pouring himself a glass of water. “Might’ve been better if I didn’t come home and find my boyfriend in bed with another man.”

Kenma ducked his head, ignoring the pout as he huffed out a laugh. “You were the one who suggested having a threesome with him.”

“Hey! I wasn’t serious,” Oikawa replied, filling another glass with water and handing it to Kenma. “Though do you think he’d -”

“No,” Kenma said flatly. He glanced up at Oikawa’s hurt expression and said, “Maybe Iwaizumi?”

“Ken-chan!” Oikawa said, pulling back in a horrified fashion. “You’re so mean!”

Shaking his head, Kenma took a drink before walking into the living room. “You like me mean, though.”

“No,” Oikawa said, following him and flopping down on the couch. “I like you in my lap.”

Try as he might, Kenma could not ignore Oikawa’s open arms. Giving a soft sigh he carefully crawled into those arms, resting his head against Oikawa’s chest and taking another sip of water as Oikawa started to tell him about the party.

It was comfortable, being here in Oikawa’s arms. He was happy. Oikawa didn’t expect him to talk much, just make little noises every so often to show that he was still paying attention. Most of the time, he could even play his video games while listening. Oikawa knew him well enough to know he heard every word.

After a while the words petered out, replaced by soft kisses to the top of his head. This, too, was nice. Comfortable. Good.

Thinking about the earlier conversation, Kenma pulled back and looked up at Oikawa’s face. Oikawa did know, right? Even if he hadn’t ever said the words?

“What?” Oikawa said, a shiver of worry crossing his face. His fingers were just a little tight as the held Kenma close.

Kenma wondered what caused it. He wondered if the throwaway words from earlier masked a deeper insecurity. Oikawa, he knew, had many insecurities locked away inside his heart.

Never, ever, did Kenma want to be one of them.

Swallowing, he felt his heartbeat quicken as he said, “I love you.”

Oikawa just stared at him a moment, eyes widening. Kenma felt alarmed when they started to fill up with tears. 

“Oh, Kenma,” Oikawa said, hugging him tight.

“Ack!” Kenma replied, feeling water from his glass splash all over his lap at the unexpected move. 

“Ah! Sorry, sorry,” Oikawa said, letting go enough to try and brush the water away. He laughed, taking the glass from Kenma and setting it on the side table. “I just didn’t expect that.”

Kenma nodded, looking down and letting his hair hide his burning cheeks.

“I should probably get you out of those wet clothes,” Oikawa teased, gently gathering Kenma back into his arms.

“Maybe,” Kenma said, tilting his head to allow the kisses Oikawa rained down upon the side of his neck. Kisses were good. Long fingers caressed under his chin, tilting his head back to allow Oikawa to capture his mouth. He tasted like fruity alcohol drinks and spicy food. He needed to brush his teeth.

Later though. For now, Kenma just sank into the kiss, letting every movement of lips against his, every brush of Oikawa’s tongue, ever gentle caress from his hands reassure the anxiety that had risen up at him by admitting how he felt. 

It was a scary thing to say, but it was true, and if it made Oikawa happy he could put up with the anxiety.

Oikawa pulled back, looking down at him as and licking his lips. There was a glint in his eye that stirred something deep in Kenma’s belly. It was still amazing to him, after all this time, that this incredible man chose to be with him. Wanted him. Cared about him.

“I love you too,” Oikawa murmured, fingers brushing hair back from Kenma’s burning cheek. “Wanna go figure out reasons to sleep late tomorrow?”

Kenma smiled, giving a little nod. 

Yes. This was good.

He stood, tugging Oikawa up from the couch and leading him back towards their bedroom. Oikawa’s fingers intertwined with his, the other man’s free hand reaching out to trace down over his back. 

This was good. This was love. 

He very much hoped that Bokuto and Kuroo could find the same sort of happiness that he shared with Oikawa.

If things went well, they probably would.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed the fluffy so far ^_^ Tumblr @ <https://www.tumblr.com/blog/kaiyouchan>.


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